If he says, “I want to do good, so I shall bequeath one-third of my wealth to the mosques,” we say: Enriching your heirs is better for you, as the Prophet ﷺ said: “To leave your heirs well provided for is better than to leave them dependent on others” (1).

Thus, there are three rulings concerning bequests: a recommended bequest, a prohibited bequest, and a disliked bequest—the bequest of a poor person whose heir is needy. If his heir is not needy while he himself is poor, then making a bequest is permissible, because the basic ruling concerning it is permissibility.

His statement, “A bequest of the entire estate is permissible for one who has no heir,” means that it is permissible for a person with no heir to bequeath all his wealth. Thus, if a man has no heir and possesses great wealth, and he bequeaths that wealth for the construction and maintenance of mosques, this is permissible. This is because the Prophet ﷺ explained the prohibition of exceeding one-third by saying: “To leave your heirs well provided for is better than to leave them dependent on others.” If he has no heir, then there is no one entitled to claim his wealth; consequently, it is permissible for one who has no heir to bequeath his entire estate.

These are four of the five legal rulings concerning bequests. The fifth is that a bequest may be obligatory. A person must make a bequest regarding every binding right owed by him for which there is no evidence. For example, if a man owes a debt and the creditor has no witnesses, the debtor must make a bequest for the repayment of his debt. This is except where there is evidence for the debt, for if there is evidence, the right cannot be lost—provided that the evidence is present, known, and reliable. These are three conditions: